Saturday, February 21, 2009

Adobe Youth Voices

Today I had the privilege of attending one of Adobe Youth Voice's workshops. I was originally asked to help present, interview and document the event but as the day progressed so did my involvement. Just a quick background for those I haven't told already, I'm part of a media team lead by Vincent Lowe and I am assisting in helping document (ala behind the scenes glimpse) Cinequest.

Today's planned format went straight out the window, and in the end, I think it turned out a better experience for me, and I'm sure for many others. I ran into some familiar filmmakers from San Jose State University too, so that was neat. Richard from Barkada Inc was also in attendance because, as coincidences would have it, he was assigned to work the event!

It was heaps of fun learning about what the young participates found inspiring and what they wanted to get out of the program. Part of AYV's goal is to make sure their voices/ideas are heard and what better way than through the visual medium, right? Right. When formal introductions concluded, we went straight to work. The first thing that caught my attention was that they provided the students/participants with Canon HV30's! And if you've kept up with my blog, you should know that that's the exact camera I own! BONUS: their editing software, obviously, is adobe premiere, so I had some familiarity with the evident trouble(s) the premiere pro has with capturing hdv footage from a canon hv30.

I felt like 'Johnny-on-the-spot' with the quick fixes. But the real credit goes out to those that spent hours assisting with creating something out of nothing by incorporating years of experience to help guide these students through tasks. Who knows, there could be another Speilberg in the bunch, right? It could happen, why not? At some point I assisted with a trio of student's documentary project. I helped them conduct the interview and offered suggestions on how to always keep an eye and ear out for footage that you didn't mean to capture initially because there could be a gem in them. More is better, in the case of documentaries. I hope their project ends up being something they can look back on and know that they'll always remember the small lessons it taught them.

Well, that was my day at Adobe. I left with a smile, experience in my pockets, new friends and a slew of free Adobe software training books. Chhhheeeeehhoooooo!